Friday, December 23, 2011

Grant and I are off to my parent's house in NH tomorrow morning to spend Christmas Eve and Day with my family. Then on the 26th we're off to Kansas to see his family! I think this is going to be the best Christmas ever. And maybe the last one where I have actual time off to spend days and days with the people I love instead of just a few hours as is normal for people in the hospitality industry. I am very lucky this year to have this opportunity to see everyone so close to the holiday. I don't know when this will happen again.

Grant and I are all moved into our new apartment. It is perfect! Now we just need the gas company to cooperate so we can get hot water!! (long story) and Comcast to come when we get back so we will have our own internet.

I have even more to be thankful for. I got a job! I start January 3rd, the day after we get back. It's easily within walking distance of my apartment too!

In other news: I am selling my car. :( I am really really going to miss her. She was my first car, and anyone who was reading my blog when I first started blogging will remember when I bought her. But, since my job is within walking distance, and Grant has a car, there is just no need for me to have it. I can't afford to register, inspect, and insure it either. I am not going to complain about saving money from avoiding all that! Not to mention the winter parking ban in Montpelier which has me up at 7am every day to move my car from a parking lot to a free spot on the street.

Anyway, I just wanted to give an update and tell everyone Happy Christmas! I hope everyone has a wonderful time. :) See you after the new year!

Monday, December 19, 2011

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Today is my 21st birthday! Ahh yes, very exciting. I'm happy and all, but it's really not as exciting as all that. I am going to the bar with a friend to see if there are any free drinks to be had for this birthday girl, and then we'll just be hanging out until Grant gets out of class at 10. It's probably bed time shortly after that because I have to be up early tomorrow. I have 2 job interviews tomorrow! And then on Friday Grant and I are going to look at some possible apartments.

How have I spent my birthday so far? Well Grant made me a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich on a bagel for breakfast. (yay!) And then later when we went to the NECI cafeteria for lunch Grant's car decided it wasn't going to start. Turns out the battery is dead. After trying to jump it ourselves to no avail we called AAA to come to our rescue. An hour later the guy jumped us with his super-power jumper (apparently when we tried to jump it the battery was just too dead for regular cables) and we bought a battery from AAA for $120.

Fast forward to me meeting friends for dinner to find a $15 parking ticket on my car. Damn. This is just not our month for cars and money! I'll admit the parking ticket was totally justified, just wishing I hadn't gotten it.

So that is the quick briefing of what has been going on. Hopefully I'll have more information soon about jobs and apartments. I have another thing or two up my sleeves that I am keeping hush hush because I don't know how they might turn out.

And a little something to make up for missing this week's Music Monday:

Saturday, December 10, 2011

So we have had a major change in plans! Everything got turned upside down in less than a week. It started last Saturday when Grant noticed the heater/AC unit in his car wasn't working. Lucky for us we haven't been getting snow so we could still drive without needing to defrost the windows. We dropped his car off at the mechanic on Monday and they told us it was going to be a $600-something dollar part. With labor, taxes, and the oil change and new wiper blades his car needed the total cost to make his car good to go? $940. That was a painful check to write.

I had some people ask, "Well why did you fix it? Why not just go without heat?" I just wanted to ask these people if they had ever tried to drive a car without heat in a New England winter. Your windows are iced over on the outside, foggy on the inside, and you literally can't see out of any of them until your car has sat there with the heat on for 5 minutes. It isn't ourselves keeping warm we were concerned with, it was being able to safely drive the car.

Anyway, that means we don't have the money to afford an apartment in Park City. Park City is expensive beyond reason. We had people give us plenty of suggestions. "Live in the youth hostel, find a heated storage unit and live in it, just move from temporary housing to temporary housing." None of these sounded at all appealing to us. Maybe we just have too high a standard of living?

So Grant went and talked with the financial aid department at NECI and asked if he could fast track. Fast tracking is skipping the internship altogether and moving on to his BA classes. We originally wanted to do that. We tried to talk to them months ago and they said unless he paid the entire tuition up front he couldn't. They weren't willing to estimate his grants and loans based on what he received before. For some reason they were willing to help him this time!

For a little while we weren't sure of what we were going to do. Find a place less expensive to move to? Go live with his friends in Kansas City? It was stressful not knowing, so I am glad we figured out we are definitely staying. It isn't a bad thing at all, especially because it was our original plan 5 months ago.

The problem? I told my work 3 months ago that my last day was going to be December 21st. They have already replaced me. I am now out of a job. I'm trying to figure out if there is a job within another department at the same hotel I can possibly move to. So far I have been offered a position paying much less money and it is only 4 days a week. I can't take that much of a pay cut and still afford to pay my bills. So as of right now I still don't have a job.

We also don't have an apartment. We are trying to find an amazingly cheap 1 bedroom apartment for just us, or a 2 bedroom and a roommate. We are looking at house shares. No luck yet.

So with the thoughts of "I don't have a job after the 21st, and we don't have an apartment after the 1st." running through my head, I have been worrying myself sick. Literally. I am sick because I've been stressing over this. I just need to calm down and trust that things will work out, but that is so much easier said than done! I want to know that we are going to be okay financially.

We have amazing friends, though. When I was crying and freaking out last night they told me that I was being really silly. "Worst case scenario you come and stay with us until you find another place and you try to work with the school." were their exact words. I feel blessed to have friends who are so willing to give us there extra room.

And I have to say that I am still happier this year than I was this time last year. This time last year Grant had just left to go to Florida for 6 months and I was depressed. I have great friends. An amazing boyfriend. And I am still going to find a way for us to see both our families around the holidays. Really, things aren't that bad. Please keep us in your thoughts though, because I could really use a job and a cheap apartment.

I'm off to send out my resume some more and scour for more apartment opportunities. Maybe I'll be able to rest a little after and my headache will go away. I am too stressed and tired to clean my apartment, which is saying something considering I clean when I get stressed 90% of the time...

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Grant and I are slowly packing our things. This calls for some tough decisions, and the realization that we have a lot of stuff. A lot of stuff that, when it comes down to leaving it or lugging it across the country, we're opting to leave it in the closet at my parent's house.

Goodbye more than half my clothes. Half my shoes. Most of my books and movies. I just hope everything we are bringing fits in the car. (hopefully my parents don't give me unneeded stuff for Christmas, or we're screwed) We should be fine if we find a furnished apartment.

On that note, still no luck finding an apartment. Or a job. I almost had a panic attack today thinking about both of those things and the amount of money we have in savings versus the amount of money we might need. I'm still fighting myself to not worry about it.

Yes, we still have time. But not a lot. It's December, and we're moving in less than a month. Yikes. Please wish us luck!

My parents come up this weekend with Tia and our dog Cuda, and they are taking some things back with them. I am very excited to see my sister in just a couple days! And my dog. And my parents. I'm just all around excited for this weekend! Spa day with Tia; lunch with the family. I can't wait! :D

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Grant and I had Sunday and Monday off, and yesterday I got the urge to bake. It was a cool, rainy day. The rain, of course, melted all the snow we got last week. So now it's slushy and gross out. Anyway it was a perfect baking day! Plus my sweet tooth wanted something. I couldn't put my finger on it, but I finally chose to make Russian Tea Cakes. I think I first made these in my senior year of high school. I believe I made them for a cookie goodie bag I was giving out to people. I made them again last year with my sister just for us. I've finally perfected the recipe this year!

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2.In a medium bowl, cream butter and vanilla until smooth. Combine the 6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar and flour; stir into the butter mixture until just blended. Add milk. Mix in walnuts. Roll dough into 1 inch balls, and place them 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
3.Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven. When cool, roll in remaining confectioners' sugar.

Why did they come out so much better this year? I did something a little differently that I hadn't done before. I actually added the nuts. I was never a big nut-in-my-cookies fan before, so I had always excluded them. It says optional, right? True, but even adding a little extra flour just doesn't get the same taste or texture. I actually didn't have walnuts, but I did have almonds. Almonds worked perfectly, and I honestly don't think I'll use walnuts next time I make these just because they turned out so well! If I had had any almond extract I would have added that, but we didn't.

Another alteration I made was in the powder coating. I had extra ground almonds, so I mixed that with the powdered sugar. YUM! These made our rainy cold day better. :) What have you baked recently?

Monday, November 28, 2011

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Grant and I just celebrated our first Thanksgiving together. This was our first Thanksgiving spent together because last year he went home to celebrate with his family. It's a very important holiday in his family. It was the first time in 10 years Grant hasn't cooked with his dad, so he was feeling a little homesick. To make him feel a little better we made something he's always made with his dad for the holidays, a Bailey's Cheesecake. YUM! This is probably the best cheesecake dessert I've ever eaten.

He "frosted" it with whipped cream, and dusted it with chocolate shavings.

I know I skipped right to dessert, but that was what we made for the meal. The rest of the meal was made by our friends. We started with snacks, some of my favorites were the baked brie and the goat cheese logs. Have you ever had baked brie? It is one of the easiest, most delicious snacks you can make. And perfect for a party!

Goat Cheese Logs. From left to right-
Dill and Lemon Zest
Chocolate Ganache with Hazelnuts
Pistachios & Cranberries with Honey

The baked brie is puffed pastry, brie, fig and raspberry preserves. You bake it and out comes deliciousness! You can serve it by itself or with crackers.

Our friends brined the turkey for 3 days before smoking it on Thursday morning. This bird came out beautifully! It had great flavor, and I think it was better than the roast turkey we also had.

Along with the turkey were all the fixings. It was a great meal and I can't thank our friends enough for having us over! When we finally sat down the table was beautifully set.

We all had a great time. I feel bad that Grant and I didn't stay very long after the meal to help with clean up, but we were asleep on the couch by 8:00. I had to work in the morning from 7-3, but I made it in time to see my friends and eat some good food, which is what counts. We had a terrific holiday, and I hope everyone else did too!

Monday, November 21, 2011

I originally wanted to post a mixwit tape for this, but upon searching for the site quickly found out it has closed. I guess I'm out of the loop! Oh well, a little research and I found a new playlist maker. Here's 10 songs. :)

Sunday, November 20, 2011

I keep saying I'll give you the details about us moving to Utah, and then I don't. Sorry! Well, here it is.

You may not know, but for our school we have to do internships. We have the opportunity to work in restaurants and hotels all around the country, and sometimes outside of the country. Grant has been very lucky with his internships. Last year he had the opportunity to go to work in a private club in Florida. He learned a tremendous amount! (and got to sit on a beach while I was freezing in snow up to my belly button here in VT) This year he was offered another fabulous job/internship with a great restaurant in Park City, Utah. He asked me if Utah sounded like a good place to go for 6 months, and I said "heck yes!" I've only been as far west as Kansas, and that was only for a few days. I actually get to go live out there for 6 months now!

Luckily I am done with school now, so I have nothing holding me back from going with him this time. Too bad they get more snow there than we do here... Oh well, maybe next year we'll go somewhere warm. We have plenty of time to think about it.

I do not have a job out in Park City yet. Most places want me there for the beginning of December, the start of the busy season. There are too many things I'd miss by going out there early, so I have decided that is not an option. I'd rather have a job before we get out there, but at the same time I know that if I don't it really won't be long before they have an opening somewhere worth working at. The hospitality industry has the highest employee turnover.

We also don't have an apartment yet... that is making me nervous! We're looking every day, though. Most people just haven't started placing ads for apartments available in January yet. If anyone knows of anything, feel free to pass it along!

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Me: I really love my job! My supervisor is finally noticing everything I do at work, and he's really appreciative. He said he's not looking forward to me leaving next month. I like the people I work with, everyone is so helpful and nice. The resort is beautiful and most of the time the guests are laid back and relaxed. How am I going to find a job just as wonderful in Park City?!

Grant: I'm going to be the good boyfriend here and tell you something you already know, you don't need to go to Utah with me. We can do long distance again if you want to.

Me: You're an idiot if you think I want to be away from you for 6 months again. It's just a job, I know I'll find another!

He really is wonderful. He didn't have to say that I had the choice not to go with him, I already knew that. He also already knew I had made the decision to go wherever he was going a long time ago! Being in a long distance relationship with him for 6 months was one of the hardest things I have ever done. It was worth every second when I finally got to be in his arms again. I am very excited to be moving to Utah with him!

Something I realized a while ago was that people will always take precedence in my life. No job will ever be more important than my family. Grant is definitely considered family to me, and being with him is more important than a job. Does this mean I have bad work ethic? No. I arrive at work early every day, I work my butt off while I'm there, and then I happily get my butt home when my work day is done! Coming home to him is one of the best parts of my day. :D

I found this article and I felt the need to share. It is called The One Minute Mystic and I think it really shows that we can stay connected even in the midst of our busy days. I know that even on days where I'm not "busy" I find myself unable to sit down and meditate. We should all take a few moments from our day to appreciate what we have and the beauty of the universe around us. This is something I have personally been struggling with lately. I haven't done yoga or meditation in months, probably close to a year. *sigh* I remember when I did yoga and meditated almost every day during my senior year of high school. I felt so much more in touch with the world around me then! I need to train myself to get back to that, even if it's just a few moments a day.

Friday, November 18, 2011

That last post was really just a big rant, so I apologize about that. I really am very thankful the last year is over with, though. Time to look to the future!

In my immediate future: Work, cleaning the house and stressing about money, finding an apartment, and finding a job. That's a daily basis thing for me.

My sister, Tia, is turning 16 on December 3rd. Exciting! And nerve racking. She's my baby sister... so I have a lot of mixed feelings about this. To celebrate we are going to the resort I work at and we are both getting massages. This is going to be such a treat! I've been working there since April and still haven't taken advantage of the $40 50 minute massage... and that's including gratuity. It's mostly because I would rather spend my money on other people rather than myself. Which is why the only way this was going to happen is if I was going to the spa with someone. We'll be celebrating the day after her birthday, as I know the spa is much slower and in need of business on Sundays than they are on Saturdays.

Also MY birthday is coming up on December 14th. More specifically my 21st birthday. I am excited and happy, but less so than I thought I would be. At least for the actual night. I'm not really into partying. And getting so drunk I throw up does not sound fun at all. I am much more excited for the following Sunday when Grant and I will be taking advantage of another perk from the resort I work at; the employee room rate! $100 on Friday and Saturday, $50 every other night. For a 4 diamond hotel that is fantastic! Just a night away with him and no other worries sounds perfect to me. :)

My last day at work is going to be the 21st of December. Then I'll be packing and seeing family for the holiday, then it's time for the big move! That's for the next post, though. ;)

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Excuse the implied profanity, I don't actually swear that often but I think it fits perfectly with the feeling of this post. Can I just say thank GODS the last 6 months are over with? Wait, scratch that, thank Gods the last YEAR is over with. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't bad, just stressful. I wouldn't change a thing. Well, maybe a couple of things. But I learned, and that's what's important. Shall I start at the beginning?

This time last year I was a full time BA student taking 7 or 8 classes at the same time and each one giving me hours of homework. I was stressing about that and the fact that my boyfriend was going to be leaving shortly to move to Florida for 6 months. Boo. :( Fast forward to a crappy 20th birthday, a sad Christmas and New Years, an even sadder Valentine's Day, and just me continually being stressed out and dealing with a long distance relationship. Then, BOOM! On-ground classes are over, I'm still technically a full time student, but it's just online class, and I got to go to Florida to finally see Grant again. Florida was AMAZING. Warmth, sun, palm trees, cute little lizards, the whole shebang.

I come back to VT and live with a crazy lady for a little while since Grant is still in Florida and our future roommates can't move in with me until June. I start working full-time at an awesome resort and I love my job.

June rolls around and I get to fly to Kansas and drive back to VT with Grant. Road trips are fun! We move in with our roommates with, yet another crazy lady. We move out before July comes. What a hellish month that was. We found a great apartment, though! Since then I've been working full-time still at the resort, going to class online, cleaning our tiny apartment after our messy roommates, and taking care of Grant and myself.

Yeah. I'll repeat. I deserve a medal.

I am 100% done with classes now. I can have a life again!

Next up on my agenda: spa day with my (not so) little sister. She's turning 16 soon, and I'm taking her to the spa at my resort. :) More on that in a later post. Also getting ready to move to Utah! I'll have another post about that as well.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Hello everyone! I said I was back, but disappeared again. Well I'm going to do that a lot probably... Life is crazy busy. But it's going well! This post is both an update and an introduction. I want to tell you all a little bit more about my boyfriend Grant, since you'll probably hear a lot about him.

There we are! We took that picture of us at a mall in Florida when I went down to see him. He was down there for his internship at a private country club. Other than those short 5 days of heaven, we've been apart for almost 6 months now. But, in 4 days I will be flying down to Kansas (where he's been visiting friends and family for the last month) and I get to meet his family and friends. It will be nice to be with him again, and finally put an end this long-distance thing. I've missed him like crazy.

How we met: He went to NECI for the culinary program, he started much later than me. We met last summer in August. He is still attending school, and has just completed his first internship. He'll be back in VT soon to finish his AOS degree and then he is going to continue with the BA Culinary program.

He is an amazing cook! I will probably be posting a lot about the things he makes that I get to eat, but if you'd like to see some past meals and hear from his own mouth about his creations you can check out his blog. He is very dedicated to his school and work. His blog is delightful to read. Yes, I'm biased, but I'm also telling the truth.

He is 25. He shaves his head, in case you were wondering. He has gotten me hooked on Dr. Who! He's a geek, and I love it. He's going to teach me to play a game called 40k, and while he's been home he's been playing D&D with his friends. He loved books and reading just as much as I do. I can talk to him about anything! The first night we hung out we talked for hours about everything we could think of.

This blog used to be an outlet for me to talk about my spirituality. I now have Grant to share these things with, which is wonderful. He supports me in everything I do, and makes me want to try even harder to do well.

I could go on forever about him, but I'll end this post before it gets too long and boring for you all. You might not hear from me until we get back from Kansas. We're driving back up and then moving into a house with our friends. I will have pictures of the gorgeous house we'll be living in, and probably some pictures of delicious food. Until then, TTFN!

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Wayward Sons: Legends
This webcomic is very entertaining to read- especially if you know your mythology! It has a great story line and funny, semi-related, updates on the weekends.

Food Porn Daily
Appropriate for work! Just maybe not if you've missed your lunch break. These food pictures will make you drool and your stomach rumble. I can sit for hours clicking and staring at picture after picture of delicious looking food.

Post Secret
I think most people know Pose Secret. It's a fun website to read on Sundays.

Plants vs Zombies
I have this game on my iPod and I love it! It has become my go-to game for de-streesing and blowing time at night before bed.

Angry Birds
Angry Birds is such an addicting game! I was addicted to it, then I beat all the levels and lost interest. Still, it's fun to play!

Those are the main things that keep me amused when I'm not talking to Grant, hanging with friends, watching movies, reading or, of course, doing homework. Oh- add working to that. I got the RA position! And I am working at the school's restaurant now, running food and backwaiting. Did I mention that? It's almost bed time, so forgive me. Hope you guys are enjoying the random life updates!

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Since I've been gone for so long I thought you may want to know what I've been up to for almost a year! You probably know most of this if you are my Facebook friend.

•I have been stressed (haha, not unexpected and not so different from this time last year)•I have been doing very well in school (if I may toot my own horn, also not unexpected or different)•I have an awesome boyfriend of almost 6 months now oI have never met anyone as amazing as him and he makes me happier than I have ever been •I miss my pets•A year and a half straight of living in the dorms is kind of making me crazy•I am applying to be an RA for my last month and a half of living here, fingers crossed, I should hear back on Saturday•I’m starting to read more books, working them into my small amount of free time o7 Habits of Highly Effective People oThe Radical Edge •I’m watching a bunch of movies lately (Grant and I have movie dates from 1300 miles away, cute right?) oCurrently making my way through the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, wicked long movies, but good•Music has kept me sane, I can listen to it while doing my hours and hours of homework oJack Johnson, Cartel, and Train are my latest favorites, anything country still holds my heart, though •I miss cooking meals and baking goodies•Grant and I are currently planning on going to New Zealand or Australia during his final internship

Yep, so this is what's new in my life. Less generic posts to come soon! Maybe some stuff I've been learning in class. :)

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

WOW! So, life is crazy. I am now in the final 2 months of my residency at NECI. I am a MOD 6 (just means how long you've been here, like being a senior) and I am very much ready to be DONE! I love school, but I can't wait to live in my own apartment and work somewhere wonderful. I won't be going far, though. In fact I most likely won't be leaving the town. My boyfriend, Grant, is currently in Florida for his internship. He will be back in VT for his next residency portion of school in June, so I don't plan on leaving. I have never been this happy before, and I wouldn't give it up for anything.

Yes, though, I am back to blogging! I have missed it. I need more than just school and talking to Grant in my life. That's all it has been for the last 2 months. Most likely you won't hear from me too frequently. I still have another month and a half left of classes! And it's going to be the most hectic month and a half of my life so far. I need to find an internship, earn money to be able to afford an apartment, find an apartment, and still deal with my crazy classes and large homework load.

I really am loving my life. I get demotivated at times, but then I remember why I'm doing all this: I wouldn't want to be doing anything else. I love this crazy industry I'm planning to work in. I want to make people happy through good hospitality. I love food.

Just as an example for how infrequent my posts will most likely be, it has taken me a week to write this one! I can't wait to begin blogging again. :)

"Life is too short to wake up with regrets, so love the people who treat you right, forget about the ones who don't. Believe everything happens for a reason, and if you get a second chance, grab it with both hands; if it changes your life, let it. Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would be worth it." -Unknown